Did you know there is an olive orchard at the top of Highway 49, on the Auburn side of the American River canyon? "Aeolia Heights was once a working orchard producing "Aeolia Olive Oil". 5,000 olive trees were planted in the 1890s by Frederick Birdsall. "The orchard was named for Aeolus, the Greek god of the winds, for the evening breezes that come down the canyon on summer evenings."
It was quite the operation until the 1950's, when imported olives started to make a dent in the business. Eventually the operation closed in the 1970's. The trees are overgrown now, and mostly unnoticed by those driving Highway 49 from Cool to Auburn. The above photo, taken in 1910, shows a young orchard in it's prime. You can see Highway 193 running along the hill. Auburn is to the left, the town of Cool, about 5 miles to the right.
Nice Auburn Journal article on the olives here.
Photo: California State Library